Redemption
by Kika101
Summary: Alec hates himself for having ruined his relationship with Magnus, but will his redemption come with the arrival of the real Sebastian Verlac at the New York Institute?
1. Chapter 1

_He grabbed at him desperately, searching for something as he connected their lips, the force of the embrace smashing their teeth together, but he didn't care. Neither of them did, it was a moment where they were together again, but as he reached out again, to pull the man closer to him, his hands drifted right through him, the man disappearing into black smoke, leaving the younger boy alone, reaching out for a dream that was already lost. _

Alec awoke with a start, gasping for air, and then groaning as he realised he'd had the same dream _again_. It was always him grasping for Magnus, begging for him to return, but it was only a dream. A dying hope to have the warlock return to him. It had been a fortnight since the night in the subway tunnels, and Alec no longer felt overwhelmed with pain, grief, guilt, and regret. Instead he felt empty. Magnus had brought so much joy and colour into his life, showing Alec for the first time how much he could be, that he wasn't in fact bland, but could be just as enthralling as Magnus himself. Now that was gone Alec dragged himself through everyday with no real desire to do so. His siblings were immersed in their own lives, and hadn't noticed Alec's plummet into self-destruction, and his frequent escapes from the Institute meant that they still presumed he was still seeing Magnus. Instead he was wondering the streets of New York with no purpose, aimlessly walking through the beautiful city, oblivious to all the opportunities it had to offer. Jace and Izzy had noticed Alec's lack of enthusiasm for training however, and his avoidance of all shadow hunter and family business. Not understanding the reason for Alec's numbness to his world had meant that the two had become increasingly frustrated with him, especially as when they confronted him about it, Alec just stared blankly ahead, not registering any of their words. This was why when a very special, and particularly complex project was assigned to the New York Institute, Izzy and Jace wasted no time dumping the responsibility onto an unknowing Alec.

"Alec _needs_ to spend some time away from Magnus. Honestly, I don't even think he remembers what a Nephilim is supposed to do. When was the last time he came on a hunt with us?" Jace said as he and Izzy walked towards Alec's room.

"Fine, but the blame's going on you. I hate it when he gets all grumpy, and I'd much rather he be angry with you," Izzy replied as she knocked on Alec's door.

It was already ten am, although lately Alec was no longer getting up at the crack of dawn, but rather emerging from his room whenever he felt like it. Izzy and Jace both blamed his new lethargic attitude on increased time spent with Magnus.

"What?" Alec said from within his room, his voice cold and emotionless.

"The Clave is arriving in an hour with a special project for you. As the eldest here, you're meant to take care of him."

There was movement inside, and Alec soon opened the door.

"Him? The special project is a person?" Alec asked, although he didn't actually sound very interested.

Izzy frowned as she saw the bags under Alec's eyes, and the bruise forming on his arm.

"Did you go hunting without us?" Jace asked as he too noticed the injury.

The truth was Alec had spent the night at a bar, testing the mundane way of fixing a heartbreak; drinking copious amounts of alcohol. It hadn't worked, and had only gotten him into a bar fight over some trivial matter he could no longer remember.

"Yeah, something like that. Why do I have to deal with this? You two are younger, and so aren't actually meant to go out on missions, so a domestic matter should be your responsibility."

"Oh yeah, because you're _so_ dedicated to Nephilim matters at the moment. Come on Alec, you've done nothing lately, that's why you get to deal with this, while _we_ do the proper stuff."

Jace's comment was meant to be lighthearted and joking, but it only made Alec's mood darken, and he chuckled to himself bitterly.

"Fine, off you go then, continue on trying to fulfill your deathwish," Alec said venomously as he pushed past Jace.

"What the hell Alec? What is _wrong_ with you lately?" Izzy called after him, but he ignored her, heading out of the Institute, intent on spending another day trying to do _anything_ to make him forget what he had done.

Alec didn't stray too far from the Institute, knowing he would have to return and keep appearances up for the Clave, and after a few minutes he returned, sneaking back into the Institute without drawing any attention to himself. He made his way to his room, and after stripping off his clothes, that he had slept in, he stepped into the shower, the hot water making him gasp as it burned his skin. He soon adjusted to the temperature, and fully situated himself under the relaxing spray. It was refreshing, the water feeling like it could wash away all of his regrets, the way he'd ruined his relationship with the only person who had ever loved him for _him_. Alec punched the wall in front of him as he remembered the night, and all of the decisions leading up to it. He opened his eyes, feeling a dull pain throbbing through his knuckles, and washed away the blood pouring over his pale skin from the tiles he'd smashed. After a few minutes Alec got out of the shower, and grabbed one of his towels, frowning as the blood from his hand quickly corrupted the white material. A quick healing rune got rid of the cuts, which were deeper than he had originally thought, but the wall was not such an easy fix. He cleared the broken tiles from the shower, but the wall still had a fist sized dent in it. Shrugging his shoulders, Alec stepped out of the bathroom and quickly got dressed into his shadow hunter gear. It was the appropriate dress code whenever the Clave was visiting, although he had not worn it in a while.

Still with plenty of time left, and his siblings nowhere in sight, Alec strolled through the halls of the Institute, looking for a distraction. He soon came across the training room, which he hadn't stepped foot in since he'd last seen Magnus. After a quick glance over his shoulder, Alec walked to the far side of his room, and picked up his bow. He ran his fingers over it, having missed the familiar weight of it in his hands. He then slowly drew an arrow, placed it on his bow, and drew the string back. A satisfying _twang_ sounded in his ear as he let the arrow fly, and it hit the center of the target. There had been a time when if he'd left practice for more than a few days he would have to work himself back up to that level of accuracy, but by now using a bow was second nature to Alec, and felt like it was an almost inseparable part of him.

"I haven't seen you here in a while," Jace said from the doorway of the room.

"Miss me, did you?" Alec asked sarcastically, although his voice was a little less reserved than it had been earlier.

"Yeah Alec, I have. I get it, that you want to spend time with Magnus, but seriously, it feels like you've been dead to the world lately."

Alec instantly shut down at the mention of his ex-boyfriend's name, and he put his bow down.

"The Clave will be here any minute, I'm going down to the library to greet them."

"Mum sent a fire message saying she was still held up in Idris, so her and Dad won't be here," Izzy said as she followed Alec along the hallway to the library.

"No surprise there," Jace muttered, and Alec couldn't help but agree with him.

The two parents had been even more notably absent since Max's death.

Alec watched Jace pace around the room while they all waited for the Clave representatives to arrive.

"If you want to see Clary would you just go! You're driving me crazy!" Izzy declared.

Jace stopped and threw himself down into the chair next to Alec.

"You'd think they'd be here on time!"

"Not everyone is as fanatically organized as you, Jace," Izzy said, and Alec sighed as he felt another fight between the two impending.

Just then the portal startled to crackle with energy, saving Alec from having to restore the peace between his siblings. Alec stood, and gestured for Jace to do the same. As they did so two adult shadow hunters dressed in gear stepped through, and a younger Nephilim followed. He cowered behind the others, and so Alec couldn't make him out clearly.

"Alexander Lightwood, I presume," one of the shadow hunters said.

He was a middle-aged man that Alec didn't recognize, although there many mediocre people who worked for the Clave that Alec could never remember.

"The Clave expects you to care for this Nephilim, Sebastian Verlac."

The three Lightwoods tensed at the name, having been used to it being associated with the demon that had killed their brother, Jonathan Morgenstern. Izzy jumped forward, slipping between the two Clave representatives, and tried to grab Sebastian. He flinched away from her as she tried to grasp his neck, his height giving him an advantage, and his quick movement revealed a long and deap wound spanning across his throat. Izzy realised her mistake and stepped back, muttering an apology as she stood behind Alec and Jace.

"This is the _real_ Sebastian Verlac. We presumed him dead, once we discovered that Jonathan Morgenstern had stolen his identity, however we found him very much alive. He does need some time to heal however, and the invitation of the hospitality of your Institute was put forward. He is in a rather fragile state, but I trust you shall be able to manage him."

With that the two adult Nephilim stepped back through the portal, departing with no other farewell. Once they were gone the three Lightwoods stared at Sebastian, who gulped nervously, and took a step back, as if he wanted to follow the others back through the portal.

"Well, he's all yours Alec, I gotta go," Jace said cheerfully as he left, and Izzy followed him out quickly.

"Great," Alec muttered to himself as he watched his siblings go. "My name's Alexander Lightwood, but you can call me Alec, and this is the New York Institute, and I guess your home, for the time being."


	2. Chapter 2

"So, is there anything you need? Anything you want to do?" Alec asked awkwardly as he watched Sebastian glance around the library.

On closer inspection Alec could see that the newcomer was not in the best shape. He was too thin, his bones showing through the loose shirt he was wearing, and there were cuts and bruises littering his skin. His fingernails were dirty and broken, as if he'd used them to claw out of somewhere, and his sunken eyes made him look exhausted. And of course there was also the cut, which was still healing even though Alec could see the healing runes drawn crudely over it, appearing as if Sebastian had drawn them on himself. All of his injuries made Sebastian look vulnerable, and much younger than Alec, although the older boy supposed he was around seventeen. The fear in his eyes was starting to fade, and the boy's face looked as if it was used to wearing a grin, rather than the skeptical frown that was currently etched across his features. Sebastian had an interesting looking face, with quirky features that shouldn't have worked together, and wouldn't have on anybody else's face, but on Sebastian they gave an interesting and attractive appeal, that made people want to know more about him. It also gave him an air of mysterious charm that made him come across as someone who would be the life of a party.

After receiving no response Alec decided to give Sebastian a basic tour of the place, and motioned for him to follow as Alec stepped out of the library and into the main foyer.

"You've got the kitchen, dining room, living room, and all that through there," Alec said gesturing to his left, "and upstairs there's the training room, and all the bedrooms. Obviously you'll stay in one of the guest rooms, there's a few to choose from; we don't really have any visitors anymore."

Sebastian nodded, his first attempt at communication, and then walked away from Alec, and towards the kitchen. Alec followed curiously, not wanting to be overbearing, but not yet trusting Sebastian.

"I'd offer to make you something but nobody in this house can cook, aside from my mother, but don't be expecting a visit from her any time soon, not that you would be, because you don't know her…"

Sebastian's silence was making Alec uneasy, which meant he was starting to blabber on about nothing. Sebastian seemed to ignore him, and moved to the fridge, starting to assemble some ingredients for what Alec presumed was an omelet. Alec took a seat and watched Sebastian start to cook, relieved that he appeared to be able to look after himself, as Alec really didn't want to become a babysitter. _It's not like you have anything else to do_, he thought to himself bitterly.

Alec had been fighting off his hangover all morning, however at the smell of cooking food his stomach did a back flip, and he covered his mouth with his hands as his body threatened to empty the contents of his stomach.

"I've always thought my cooking was quite good, and definitely not gag worthy," Sebastian said as he sat down with his now finished omelet.

Alec looked at him in confusion, both because of his joke, and because he had finally heard him speak. His voice was laced with a strong French accent, due to living in the Paris Institute for the majority of his life. It also had sing-song softness to it, that reminded Alec of a lullaby, that he could listen to for hours.

"Don't worry, your cooking has nothing do with it," Alec replied, lowering his hand and ignoring his body's reaction to the night before.

Alec expected some sort of response, but it seemed that Sebastian was done with talking, and he once again returned to remaining silent. Alec had always the quiet one, surrounded by his loud siblings, so it was strange for him to around someone as quite as himself. It left him with the itch to try and make conversation.

"Why not stay in Alicante? The Clave didn't tell us anything about you, but if you need to heal then wouldn't the capital be better? Or a visit to the Silent Brothers? And wouldn't it make more sense for you to stay with the Penhallows?"

For a moment it looked as if Sebastian wasn't going to answer, but eventually he did.

"I'm not a priority. I know nothing about Jonathan Morgenstern, so I can't help the Clave. They've sent me here to get me out of the way."

"Oh," was all Alec could think to say, and he let Sebastian finish his meal in silence.

It had been nice to have a momentary distraction, but now Alec's mind started to wonder again, and as always, his focus returned to Magnus. He called the warlock repetitively after the break up, until one day instead of reaching Magnus' voicemail, where he could leave another apology message, he was answered by an automated voice telling him the number was no longer in service. This had driven Alec to finally pay Magnus a visit, as he still hadn't even collected his stuff. Instead of a glittery apartment Alec found the place completely abandoned with nothing left but a cardboard box containing all of the stuff Alec had left at Magnus' loft over the time they had been together. Alec had sat in the empty space for a while, but had eventually returned to the Institute feeling even more depressed than before, as he now had absolutely no way of getting in contact with Magnus, which was a constant reminder that the warlock was gone.

"You said I could choose a room."

Alec was brought back to reality by Sebastian's voice, and he looked up to see he had already finished eating and cleaned up after himself.

"Yeah, follow me," Alec said as he stood and walked up to one of the many guest rooms.

"Will this one do?" He asked Sebastian, who simply nodded, not looking as if he particularly cared where he slept. "Do you need anything?"

"I don't need a babysitter, if that's what you're asking. I can take care of myself."

Alec noticed the bitterness in Sebastian's voice and decided to leave the newcomer in peace.

"Okay, well I'm going out. I'm not sure when my siblings are getting back, or if I'll be back first, so just make yourself at home, and try not to get into any trouble."

Sebastian turned away from Alec, his slumped shoulders only making him look more fragile. Alec left quickly after that, heading out of the Institute, content to let his feet take him anywhere they wanted, without think about it. Half an hour later Alec finally figured out where he was; a rather familiar street in Brooklyn. Alec kicked the curb aggressively as he realised that he'd ended up at Magnus' old apartment _again_. It seemed that no matter how hard he tried he just couldn't push the warlock out is his head. He still consumed the majority of his thoughts, and invaded every aspect of his life.

When Alec returned he found his siblings were gearing up for a hunt, and without even asking he could tell that he was not invited. Jace and Izzy were both annoyed at his cold behaviour, and they were meeting up with Clary and Simon, in what appeared to be some strange demon slaying double date, of sorts. Also, as they told Alec, somebody had to stay with the 'special project', who had been awoken by the ruckus created as Izzy and Jace got ready to leave. Alec would have given his usual 'be safe' speech, but he didn't really feel very inspired, and it wasn't like Jace and Izzy would listen to him anyway. As soon as they had disappeared Alec turned around to find Sebastian standing in the doorway of the living room, where Alec had settled himself.

"You're not going hunting," Sebastian observed, rather than asked. "I told you I don't need a babysitter."

"That's not what the Clave seems to think, and anyway, I'm not welcome with them at the moment."

"Why not?" Sebastian asked as he walked into the room and sat down, albeit on the seat farthest away from Alec as possible.

"I'm being punished for having a bad attitude," Alec said with a hint of harshness.

"So I'm now the household punishment? Just what I always wanted."

Alec quirked a brow at the lighter and less timid tone Sebastian had adopted.

"So, why the bad attitude then?" Sebastian asked after a moment, his confidence growing as his curiosity increased.

Alec felt reserved about revealing the truth, but he didn't want to shut Sebastian down just after he'd started talking normally, and the intensely pure fascination on Sebastian's face reminded Alec a little of Max.

"My boyfriend dumped me," he finally said.

Sebastian gave him an odd look, and Alec then realised that if the other shadow hunter had been absent during the scene he'd made in the Accords Hall then he would have no idea Alec was gay, a fact that often didn't sit well with other Nephilim.

"So you're the Lightwood who was dating a warlock, I take it?" Sebastian said, but instead of the disgust Alec expected Sebastian's tone remained the same.

"Uh, yeah, how did you know?" Alec asked, trying to force himself to relax.

"Some of the Nephilim were talking about you, when I was with the Clave."

"I created quite the scandal," Alec said bitterly.

"The Clave are socially behind all other communities in the shadow world, just ignore them," Sebastian said, once again surprising Alec.

He really had to stop assuming the worst about people's judgments.

"You don't sound very fond of the Clave."

"My Aunt always told me that they were a cold, selfish lot, but I didn't believe them until I turned up in Alicante on the verge of death, and they discarded me the second they could. I haven't had much to do with shadow hunters, but so far, I don't like many of them."

"Thanks," Alec said sarcastically.

"I did not say I dislike all of them, however I too have noticed your 'bad attitude', and I am not one to brought down by others," Sebastian replied playfully.

"You really are making yourself at home," Alec said having noticed that boy's self-confidence and talkativeness had blossomed in full force.

"Sorry about being so…nervous before. After my encounter with Jonathan I've been trying to be more cautious around strangers."

"What happened with him? Last I heard he left you for dead."

"He did…I do not want to talk about it," Sebastian said dismissively.

"Okay, sure," Alec said, understanding the desire to keep feelings hidden. "So, what's the Paris Institute like?" Alec asked instead, redirecting the conversation.

Having found a topic that suited both young Nephilim the two talked for a while, the words between them passing more easily than either of them thought they would, providing a perfect distraction for both boys as they tried to forget the recent events that were still plaguing them.


	3. Chapter 3

It was early morning by the time Jace and Izzy returned, and Alec could just see the sun starting to rise through the bay windows in the living room. Sebastian had eventually gone to bed a few hours earlier, his body becoming exhausted quicker than he would have liked due to its current state. Alec was still not sure why he was in such bad shape, but Sebastian had made it clear that he did not want to discuss anything between when Jonathan found him, and his arrival at the New York Institute. Alec had respected his privacy, and the two had discussed lighter topics, but Alec's mind couldn't be distracted forever, and as he sat alone on the couch he remembered the night in the subway again. He was becoming very skilled at imagining a million different scenarios, where Magnus either never found out about his discussions with Camille, or understood his actions. He had the feeling that deep down Magnus did know why Alec had done it, but it was something the warlock could never forgive the shadow hunter for. After so many years of Magnus having to struggle desperately on his own to stay alive, the thought of a loved one trying to shorten his life was low blow that he would never forget.

"Where's Sebastian?" Jace asked as he started to clean off his weapons, which were dripping with demon ichor.

"He went to bed, the same place you two should be," Alec replied as he scanned Jace and Izzy for any serious wounds.

They had a few cuts and scrapes, as usual, but nothing to worry about.

"I could've killed those demons in my sleep, honestly, they put up a terrible fight, and then a couple of them _ran away_," Izzy said with distaste.

"Maybe my golden aura sent them running, as they've probably never seen anything as beautiful," Jace said, referring to the heavenly fire that still burned within him.

It had started to dull down, with frequent visits from the Silent Brothers, and he could now be touched without burning anyone, however whenever he felt an emotion too strongly, or was fighting, it would flare up again.

"Oh please, if they were running away from anyone's beauty," Izzy said.

Alec tuned out at that point, not wanting to listen to yet another debate between the two, and not feeling motivated enough to stop either of them from continuing the argument.

"I'm going to bed," Alec eventually said, disrupting the two, and he then stood and left.

He needed more sleep, Alec knew that, but he was finding it harder and harder to actually get to sleep. When he was alone in his room Alec had the perfect opportunity to think about everything, and once he started dwelling on his regrets, it became a challenge to make his brain calm down enough for him to actually fall asleep. Then of course there were the dreams, where Alec's subconscious also tried to attack him for what he had done, and fill him with more guilt over what he had done to Magnus. Alec just hoped he was tired enough to go straight to sleep without thinking.

He had no such luck. After an hour of tossing and turning Alec groaned in frustration, and buried his head into the pillows. When that provided no comfort Alec gave up, and got out of bed. If sleep wasn't going to come to him, Alec figured he may as well do something, and training was something that would tire him out. As Alec walked down the Institute corridor in the clothes he had quickly tugged on before leaving his room, he heard noise coming from the room that Sebastian was staying in. Alec briefly contemplated whether or not he should investigate, weighing up Sebastian's privacy with his wellbeing. As the ruckus inside the room increased in volume, Alec decided that a quick checkup couldn't hurt. Alec pressed his ear to the wooden door, and heard thought he heard Sebastian gasping for breath. Alec then slowly opened the door, and looked in to see Sebastian's face distorted into a look of discomfort, his eyes scrunched shut, and his body fighting whatever his mind had conjured in the dream he was lost in. Alec walked over to the bed, and gently shook Sebastian, to no avail. Alec then shook him harder, and when that still did nothing, Alec picked up the glass of water sitting on Sebastian's bedside table, and poured it over his head. This finally woke the shadow hunter, and he gasped out as the world of consciousness came rushing back. He had a startled and terrified look, and he glanced around the room, obviously trying to get his bearings.

"Sorry, you were having a nightmare, and I thought it would be better if I woke you up," Alec whispered, and Sebastian focused his attention on the other Nephilim.

"I…thank you," Sebastian said just as softly.

"I'll, uh, let you get back to sleep," Alec said, but before he could leave he felt Sebastian grab his arm, with a surprising amount of force.

"Please…stay with me?"

Being the older brother meant that Alec had always sat at the bedside of his siblings when they couldn't sleep, and he had even comforted Jace when he used to have nightmares about his life with Valentine. Of course Jace had never admitted to the nightmares, and always came up with a different other reasons for Alec to stick around, but the older shadow hunter never called him up on it.

"Sure," Alec said, and he pulled up a chair next to Sebastian's bedside, making himself comfortable.

For a while Sebastian sat up completely rigid, and neither boy spoke, but soon enough Sebastian eyelids started to become heavy, and he once again was claimed by sleep. It wasn't too long after that, and before Alec's brain could remind him of Magnus, that Alec too fell asleep.

"Magnus isn't going to be happy when he finds out about this," Izzy whispered to Jace as the two looked in from the doorway of Sebastian's room.

"Oh come on, it's not like they're actually in bed together," Jace said.

Within the room the voices of his siblings made Alec stir, and he shifted in the chair he had fallen asleep in. At some point during the night had have moved so that his legs were thrown over one arm of the chair, and his neck was leaned against the other in a rather uncomfortable position. He groaned as he started to wake, his muscles sore from the awkward angle.

"If that isn't elegance, I don't know what is," Jace said sarcastically, and Izzy gestured for them to leave before Alec finished waking up.

Alec yawned and tried to stretch out, feeling surprisingly well rested for having slept in a chair for what couldn't be more than a few hours. As Alec stood he looked down at Sebastian, who was also now starting to wake up.

"Do you want me to draw on iratze on your throat? It will heal quicker," Alec said once Sebastian was fully awake and getting out of bed.

Having not actually brought anything with him, as Jonathan had taken all of his luggage, Sebastian was just in his boxers, and was trying to find his jeans. He stopped his search, and subconsciously put a hand to the cut across his throat, and after giving Alec a measured look, he nodded. Alec still had his stele in his pocket from his intended training session, and he quickly pulled it out and walked over to Sebastian, who lifted his chin up so Alec could access his neck more easily. Alec drew three runes along the long cut, just to be sure, and once he was done and had stepped away, Sebastian spoke.

"Thank you, for last night, and then this," he said gesturing to his throat, "I promise I won't always be this useless."

Rather than a self-deprecating tone, some of Sebastian's usual playfulness had returned to his voice, and Alec couldn't help but smile in response. Izzy's voice then broke through the warm atmosphere that had washed over the room.

"Alec?! What the hell is all this about a new High Warlock of Brooklyn?"


	4. Chapter 4

"I, Ragnor Fell, extend my welcomes and services as I stand in as the High Warlock of Brooklyn. As always I desire the most stable relationship between downworlders and Nephilim, and so I offer whatever assistance I can to the Institute of New York."

Izzy looked up at Alec once she had finished reading the message that had been delivered only moments ago. Izzy and Jace were standing next to each other, looking down at Alec, who was seated in one of the armchairs in the library, feeling like a child being told off by his parents. Sebastian was also with them, standing in the doorway and surveying the scene from as far away as he could.

"Care to explain why there is a new High Warlock and Magnus no longer seems to be in the city?" Izzy asked, looking at her brother impatiently.

"Magnus and I kind of… broke up. He left soon after that," Alec said, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"Alec, why didn't you tell us?" Izzy asked in a softer tone.

"I don't need your looks of pity to remind me how badly I fucked everything up," Alec said bitterly, watching Izzy flinch away as he swore, something he very rarely did.

He felt guilty for attacking his sibling, but he just wanted to be left alone, which was why he brushed off Jace's hand as his parabitia tried to comfort him.

"I'm going out," Alec said as he walked out of the library, leaving his brother and sister to stare after him in confusion.

"Yeah, I think I'm going to go as well," Sebastian said as he felt the tension in the room remain even after Alec had left.

Sebastian walked through the hallways of the Institute, fascinated by how similar it was to his own home in Paris. Those memories made him feel nostalgic as he remembered the safety he had felt with there, but the Clave had decided he was not to return to France, as he was 'too isolated from the world of the Nephilim' in Paris due to the beliefs of his Aunt, who had wanted to keep him away from the politics and prejudices of the Clave. Sebastian was starting to understand why they had made that decision, but he wouldn't go against an order of the Clave, and it wasn't like he had any way to get home anyway. Sebastian found himself in the training room, another place in the Institute that was identical to his home. Sebastian walked into the room, and trailed his fingers over the weapons displayed along the walls, until he made his way to the weapons cabinet. Inside was just about every weapon imaginable, and Sebastian smiled as his hands came to rest on a rapier, a thin and delicate sword, which also happened to be his weapon of choice. Many shadow hunters preferred heavier and more powerful weapons, but the elegance and swiftness the rapier allowed had always drawn Sebastian to it. Sebastian removed it from the cabinet, measuring the weight of the weapon as he tossed it from hand to hand and moved to the center of the room. He hadn't trained since his encounter with Jonathan, however it came back to him easily, and Sebastian felt his body loosen as he practiced a few familiar moves. He even started to smile as his body continued to relax, and tire. Sebastian started to feel exhausted quicker than usual, but of course he was not as fit as he had been, and he still needed to regain much of his strength, so he put down the weapon after a few more minutes, resigning himself to having something to eat before he continued. Sebastian was surprised to see Alec watching him as he turned to leave, and he greeted the older shadow hunter.

"I've never actually seen anyone fight with a rapier before," Alec confessed as he decided to follow Sebastian to the kitchen.

He couldn't remember when he'd last eaten properly, so Alec decided that some nutrition would do him good.

"Yeah, I have never been much of a traditionalist, and I was always a skinny child, so all of the other swords were too heavy for me to handle properly," Sebastian explained. "How about you, you look like the kind of guy to use a broad sword or something like that."

"I think you have me confused with my younger brother," Alec joked, his mood having improved, "I use bow and arrows."

"Look at the two of us, both breaking the rules," Sebastian said lightly, and Alec laughed at the comment.

He was pleased to see that Sebastian was loosening up and settling into the Institute, even if he did still look like he desperately needed to eat.

"Again, I'd offer to cook, but…" Alec said.

Sebastian simply shook his head and shooed Alec to the other side of the bench, and quickly took control of the kitchen.

"Why do your siblings always tense at my name?" Sebastian asked as he started to prepare some ingredients, and instructed Alec to start chopping vegetables, just about the only assistance Alec could offer when it came to cooking.

"We've kind of been calling Jonathan Morgenstern by your name, he's adopted it as his identity, for the time being," Alec said, feeling strangely guilty. "And, he killed our little brother, Max," Alec continued, looking down and letting his too long hair fall over his face and mask his emotions.

"I'm sorry," Sebastian said as he placed a hand over Alec's hands as a comforting gesture.

Once Sebastian had finished preparing the risotto he had made for lunch, Alec gaped at him in shock.

"You can cook!" He said, amazed, as he happily ate his food.

Sebastian smiled, and shrugged his shoulders.

"What can I say? I'm French."

Alec smiled, and continued to eat, realising how hungry he actually was. Sebastian ate his own meal slower, but his body also appreciated the nutrients. Soon enough Izzy was drawn towards the kitchen by the smell of a well-cooked meal.

"Sebastian, did you make this?"

"Why does nobody here actually believe I can cook?" Sebastian asked Alec jokingly, his lopsided grin giving him a cheeky look.

"Because nobody else can," Alec replied.

"Hey! I am not bad myself, I should cook for you sometime," Izzy said to Sebastian.

"By the Angel Izzy, we're not trying to kill our new guest," Alec said, earning an indignant look from Izzy.

"I am not _that_ bad!" She said.

"Yes she is," Alec whispered to Sebastian, making him chuckle.

"Whatever he's saying, ignore him," Izzy said as she sat down with her own dish.

"Why aren't you hanging out with Simon, I though you two were actually connected at the hip."

"Shut up Alec, you sound like _Jace_," Izzy said lightly. "Maybe I want to spend some time with my brother."

"Looks like I'm ruining family time," Sebastian said.

"More like saving me from it," Alec replied, once again earning a grin from Sebastian, which made Alec feel unexpectedly happy.

Alec shook his head, as if that would get rid of, or explain, the strange warmth that Sebastian seemed to radiate onto Alec.

"Alec, we do need to talk," Izzy warned.

"I think that's my cue to leave," Sebastian said as he got up and rinsed off his empty plate. "I'll be in the training room if anybody needs me."

"Aren't you meant to be resting?" Alec asked.

"Later," Sebastian said dismissively, shooting Alec one last smile before leaving.

"Alec, you know exactly what I'm going to ask," Izzy said once she was alone with him.

"And you already know I don't want to talk about it," Alec replied staring down into his empty bowl.

"What happened with Magnus?"

Alec sighed heavily before he started to speak.

"As you know Camille has been in town lately, and she and Magnus used to date. Anyway, she told me to come meet with her, because she could tell me about Magnus, stuff he'd never tell me. I don't know why I agreed in the first place, I think it was because everyone who knew Magnus, and that I had met, had either already slept with him, or told me what a carbon copy I was of all of his past boyfriends. Anyway, Camille also started to talk about a way for me to make Magnus mortal, but that wasn't why I was talking to her, it was to find out about Magnus' past, because he'd _never_ talk about it. It was stupid of me, so fucking stupid, and then one time Magnus followed me, and found me in the subways, and then he broke up with me."

Alec took a deep breath as he finished speaking, actually feeling more relieved now that he had actually told someone what he'd done.

"He did what?! If I ever get my hands on him Alec, I swear on the name of the Angel I'll kill him!" Izzy said.

"Wait, what? Izzy, it's my fault."

"Okay I admit, not the best move on your part, but still, Magnus drove you to that, and the he just left you, and then left the city!"

"He's a coward, and I always said he never deserved you," Jace said as walked he into the room.

"Jace? How long have you been listening?" Alec asked.

"I heard everything. Sorry, I would have said something, but you'd already started talking, and I figured you'd be more comfortable telling Izzy," Jace mumbled.

"So these past two weeks, while we've been all bitchy to you, you were dealing with your first break up?" Izzy asked, her features suddenly distorted with guilt.

"Kind of…I didn't want to say anything, because I didn't want to admit how much I stuffed up," Alec replied.

"Alec, do you seriously think we care about that?" Izzy asked.

"Yeah bro, any guy that dumps you isn't worth the dirt beneath your feet," Jace added, and Alec couldn't help but smile a little by the warmth provided by his siblings.

All the time he'd spent isolating himself from them had meant he'd forgotten how caring they could be.

"And it's a good things he's skipped town, otherwise he'd have a real problem to deal with," Izzy said threateningly, and the look Jace gave Alec showed that he was all in favour of whatever revenge plan the two could come up with.

"You two don't need to worry about that, let's just focus on Sebastian, okay?" Alec asked, feeling a little awkward over having so much attention drawn to him and his breakup. Alec was also finding Sebastian an increasingly pleasant distraction, and perhaps a shot at redemption, both with himself, and with the Clave.


	5. Chapter 5

Alec could hear the sound of someone training, and soon saw Sebastian, this time practicing with daggers instead of the rapier, which sat only a short distance from him, propped up against the wall.

"Trying out long distance weaponry?" Alec asked as he walked into the room, relieved to have a break from his siblings.

He had told them both to go and spend some time with their respective partners, after they had tried to make up for their recent absences. Sebastian spun around to look at Alec, a dagger gripped in his hand, ready to be thrown. As soon as he recognized it was Alec who stood in front of him, Sebastian dropped the dagger, and took a few steps back, looking shocked at the action he had almost followed through.

"Sorry," he whispered, and he then looked up at Alec again, "I didn't mean to…I've been very…jumpy…lately."

"Well after almost being killed that's understandable," Alec said, not too put off by Sebastian's actions.

When Jace had first arrived at the Institute he had been far worse, especially when Alec decided to jump out and scare him for a laugh one time, and was almost decapitated by the kitchen knife Jace had decided to carry around on his person at all times. His parabitai had come along way from the young child that had turned up at their doorstep all those years ago.

"You're neck is healing well," Alec observed as he saw that the cut was disappearing into nothing more than a silver, slightly raised, scar.

Sebastian put his hand to the wound subconsciously, his fingertips tracing along it.

"I wish everything else could be healed with a rune," Sebastian said as he walked to the target on the far wall and started to remove the daggers.

"If you don't mind me asking, why are you in such a physically weak state?"

Sebastian did mind, but after everything Alec had offered him, he decided it was time to come clean.

"After I managed to haul myself out of the river Sebastian dumped me in, I had no idea where I was, and I had no idea who to trust. I dragged myself all the way to Alicante with no one's help, mainly because I didn't know which shadow hunters to trust, and I didn't have any connections. Jonathan took everything I had, so between walking across France to the Idris border and living only off of stuff I managed to steal, my body suffered," Sebastain said, and as he continued to speak he pulled the daggers out of the target with increasing aggression. "And then the worst part is I got to Alicante, and once I told the Clave I had next to no information on Jonathan, they completely dismissed me. They just sent me here, and told me to 'integrate into the shadow hunter life'. Apparently they believe I was too sheltered in Paris, and they thought that the Penhallows would just give me the same treatment."

"The Clave are a bunch of assholes," Alec said in response, making Sebastian laugh, and nod in agreement.

He had been expecting pity or shock from Alec, but was pleasantly surprised by the older boy's reaction.

"They were arguing about you, when I was there," Sebastian admitted softly.

"I wonder why," Alec said sarcastically, guessing that they were still gossiping about what happened in the Hall of Accords.

"Something about added responsibility being passed down," Sebastian continued, which caught Alec's attention. "A few of them said you were too young, not even nineteen yet, and then others said you had proved you were responsible enough…and then they said something about shame, and the Accords Hall. They seemed to be in disagreement over whether your closer relationship with down worlders was a good or bad thing."

Alec listened in silence and watched as Sebastian placed the daggers he had used back in the weapons cabinet.

"How did you hear all of this?" He asked.

"I may have done some eavesdropping… Hanging around and waiting to be shipped off to New York wasn't very entertaining, so I had to find _something _to do," Sebastian said as he walked over to the rapier he had quickly become fond of, and also placed that back in the cabinet.

"You can keep that, if you want. It's not like anybody here uses it," Alec said, gesturing to the sword.

Alec was rewarded with a bright crooked smile from Sebastian as he thanked the older Nephilim.

"Don't mention it," Alec said back softly, confused by the way his heart stuttered as Sebastian looked at him with such open appreciation.

The people around Alec were always trying to hide their true emotions; both of his siblings hated revealing weaknesses such as _feelings_, his parents were very isolated and secretive, and of course Magnus had kept every aspect of his life he could hidden, and then there was the boy standing in front of Alec, filled with the same honesty that Alec also found himself displaying, although Alec's honesty usually came from his inability to lie.

"You should rest, if you want to regain your strength," Alec said, and Sebastian laughed at the mother hen nature that Alec developed over the years as a stand in parent for Jace, Izzy, and up until more recently, Max.

"Fine, but only for you," Sebastian said mischievously, which furthered Alec's increasingly conflicting feelings about the newcomer.

Sebastian smiled to himself as he walked away from Alec and up to his own room, reveling in the slight blush he had seen appear on the older boy's cheeks.

"We could get the new High Warlock to help with healing him," Jace suggested while he sat around the living room with Alec and Izzy, whilst Sebastian rested upstairs.

"We could never afford to hire him," Alec pointed out, knowing they no longer they had a warlock who would pay them special attention.

"He just has to get better the normal way," Izzy said.

"Such _mundane_ methods always take so long," Jace complained.

"We don't really have a choice," Alec said.

"How did he even get in such a bad state? Jonathan said he just dumped him in a river, which doesn't explain why he's so worn down," Izzy said.

Alec went to answer, as Sebastian had explained his reasons, however something held him back. Sebastian hadn't said it was private information, but it had still felt as if he'd been sharing a private experience, so Alec simply shrugged his shoulders.

"That's not the point. The main thing is we just have to keep an eye on him, but try not to overbear too much," Alec said, knowing that the last thing the seventeen year old would want was someone watching over him at all times.

"He still shouldn't be our main concern at the moment," Izzy said.

"Who's a concern?" Sebastian asked as he walked into the room, his hair still tussled from sleep.

He was still wearing the same clothes from earlier, as he didn't have any others, and they were starting to show the signs of being worn too much. Already they didn't look like they quite fitted properly, and were probably something the Clave had given him.

"The _other_ Sebastian," Jace said, and Alec saw Sebastian stiffen at the misuse of his name.

"Could you call him something else? I don't really like sharing my name with the psychopath who tried to kill me."

Alec winced as he saw the look on his parabatai's face darken.

"What, like Jonathan?" Jace asked menacingly.

"Well that is his name, isn't it?" Sebastian asked unknowingly.

"You know what, while we're at, why don't we all just call him Jace," the golden boy suggested with false enthusiasm.

"You've lost me," Sebastian said, not understanding Jace's sudden mood swing.

"He and Jace share the same first two names," Alec explained to Sebastian whilst giving his brother a warning look.

"We could just call him Morgenstern," Izzy suggested in an attempt to restore the peace in the room.

"And have him even more associated with Clary?" Jace asked, instantly becoming defensive of his girlfriend.

"Who is Clary?" Sebastian asked, looking more and more confused.

"Technically she and Jonathan are siblings," Alec said.

"Alec!" Jace said warningly.

"Well they are, and what else am I supposed to call him?" Alec said defensively.

"It's not like anyone calls you Jonathan," Izzy said in an attempt to be helpful.

"Valentine used to," Jace said darkly.

"How does he know Valentine?" Sebastian asked.

"He was my father," Jace snapped at Sebastian, and Alec stood up from where he'd been sitting on the couch, giving Jace another measured look.

"Wait…what? I thought he was your brother?" Sebastian asked Alec.

"He is… he's our adopted brother."

"Anything else I missed?" Sebastian asked.

"Clary is my girlfriend," Jace said, once again sounding defensive of her.

Sebastian suddenly looked confused by this, and he started to think out loud.

"So, if Jonathan is Valentine's son, and Clary's he's sister, and you're also Valentine's son… isn't that incest?"

This only made Jace even angrier, and he looked as if he was going to hit Sebastian.

"You have no idea," Izzy mumbled to herself, but Jace still shot her a dirty look.

"No! I'm Valentine's _adopted_ son."

"I though you were adopted by the Lightwoods?" Sebastian asked appearing perplexed.

"I was, when I was ten. Before then I was tricked into believing I was Valentine's son, and he also raised the other Jonathan, his actual son, in secret."

"I will never again complain about my life being complicated," Sebastian said jokingly, although his attempt to lighten the mood failed.

"Is this _funny_ to you?" Jace asked, taking a threatening stride closer to Sebastian, and Alec stepped in between the two.

"Jace, calm down, he didn't mean anything by it," Alec said.

"Oh what, now you're defending _him_ over your parabatai?" Jace asked venomously.

"Jace you know it's not like that. Sebastian has been through a lot, and all of this is a lot to take in," Alec said as he started to notice the slight glow of Jace's skin, "now I really need you to just take a moment to calm down, okay?"

Jace looked at Alec curiously, and then down at his own skin, and then understood Alec's last words, and so he stopped to take a few deep breaths. Once the glowing faded away Jace took one last glance around the room, before leaving without an explanation. Izzy went to go after him, but Alec reached out to stop her.

"Just give him a minute, he'll come back when he's ready."

"Well he's definitely someone to keep you on your toes," Sebastian said, his joking words allowing Alec to relax even after the tense atmosphere he had just been surrounded by.

"You don't know the half of it."


	6. Chapter 6

"Alec, I can't eat anymore!" Sebastian protested as Alec gestured to his half eaten breakfast.

"You still need to put weight back on," Alec replied.

"I am naturally skinny," Sebastian said indignantly, "not all of us can be as fit and muscular as you."

Izzy peered over the edge of her magazine as she heard Sebastian's comment, but Alec didn't seem to pay any attention to it.

"I'm going stir crazy in this place," Sebastian complained.

He had been making similar statements of late, as he'd been staying in the Institute for a week, and he hadn't been allowed to leave.

"You need to get your strength back," Alec said, and Sebastian groaned at the response.

"Please can I go? I'll make you Crème Brule for a fortnight!"

"You cannot bribe me with food," Alec said, "and after a few nights I would get sick of the same dish."

"Then I'll make you a degustation menu every night."

"That would not give you adequate time to rest."

Alec smiled at the comical expression on Sebastian's face, however his smile disappeared as Alec saw Sebastian eyes started to widen, and his face fall.

"Oh no you don't. You are not using your puppy dog eyes on me," Alec warned, but even as he spoke Sebastian only changed his features to look more adorable than should have been possible.

"Oh fine, one hunt! But then no more complaining," Alec said, finally caving in.

Sebastian's face shifted into one of victorious laughter, and he briefly hugged Alec, an action that he would usually be uncomfortable with, although Alec found himself not minding so much with Sebastian.

"Why is he so happy?" Jace asked as he walked in and saw the huge grin on Sebastian's face.

Jace had become more tolerable of Sebastian as time had progressed, but both now knew to avoid the topic of names and family.

"Guess who's going on a hunt," Sebastian said gleefully.

"I knew you'd give in eventually," Izzy said to Alec as she watched Sebastian start to clear the breakfast plates.

Sebastian had always been very independent, and although his Aunt had tried to raise him as best she could he had never quite been her son, and so he had learned to pull his weight from a young age. Alec found it very relaxing to have someone else also taking care of the place, as he'd had to play the parent for pretty much his whole life, while his parents seemed content with becoming increasingly less present in the lives of any of their children. Now with both parents staying in Alicante, and not even in the same home, it seemed that the Lightwood family was more separate than ever.

"I think there's some spare gear in the training room, I'll take you up there and see if we can find anything that fits," Alec said to Sebastian.

Sebastian had been wearing a combination of Alec and Jace's wardrobe, as he wasn't quite the same height as either boy, and was much slimmer than both. The results were often shirts that hung off of his body, and jeans that either dragged along the floor, or ended above his ankles.

"How about this one?" Alec asked as he pulled out a leather short sleeve shirt.

Sebastian walked forward, clad in only leather trousers, the only pair they could find that had fit him. Alec had the sneaking suspicion that they were actually designed for women, but he chose to remain silent. Alec couldn't help but trail his eyes over Sebastian's torso, noticing that he was regaining muscle, and he looked like he was now at a natural litheness, rather than the underweight appearances he'd first arrived with. Sebastian nodded approvingly and pulled the shirt on, which fit him perfectly, aside from being a little too short, and exposing the top of his prominent hipbones. Sebastian covered this however with a weapons belt that he slung his rapier into, and couple of daggers, just in case.

"Not bad," Sebastian said as he looked down at himself, seeming to be mostly amazed by the fact that he'd found a pair of hunting boots that fit.

"I'll just chuck on my stuff and I'll be down in a few minutes," Alec said as he headed towards his room, quickly picking up his bow and arrows on the way out.

Alec had purposefully chosen early morning as a time to go hunting, as there was always less demon activity at that time of day. Usually there were a few demons hanging about left over from the night, but mostly they returned to their demon dimension before the sunrise. Still, Sebastian was itching to find something to hunt, and he reminded Alec of Jace at that moment, so desperately looking for a fight. Eventually the shadow hunters decided to split up in the hopes of finding more activity that way, and Alec paired off with Sebastian, as the newest shadow hunter was most comfortable with Alec. Sebastian was also still technically Alec's responsibility, so it made sense for Alec to hunt with him, rather than Jace. Alec used to only ever fight alongside his parabatai, but with Clary now accompanying the Lightwoods on their usual rounds, he had been spending less and less time with Jace, although as he walked the streets with Sebastian, he hardly noticed. The glimmer of hope and excitement in Sebastian's eyes made Alec feel strangely free in his presence, and he found it easy to simply be around Sebastian, something rather unusual for the shy shadow hunter.

"Found one! Over there!" Sebastian said excitedly as he pointed out a demonic mass in an alleyway.

The two boys soon went to investigate, and found five demons cowering in the shadows, rather than just one. Their exact shapes were hard to make out, but that didn't matter too much as Alec walked forward until he found some loose brickwork to crouch behind as he prepped his bow and gestured Sebastian forward. Without needing to verbally communicate the two understood each other's actions, and Sebastian snuck around behind the demons, only attacking once he was in position to drive them forward and into Alec's shooting range. Alec easily shot down three of the demons, and whilst he was taking care of them Sebastian lunged at the other two, using his sword, which appeared as if it were nothing more than an extension of his arm, to artfully slay the remaining demons. The two had eradicated the group within a few minutes, and neither of them could quite believe how they had been able to work together so well.

Alec's focus was drawn away as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, and he pulled it out to reveal a text from his sister.

"Do you want to meet up with my siblings and some other friends for lunch?" Alec asked as Sebastian walked over to him.

"Sure, where are we going?"

"It's a place called Taki's, kind of a family favourite. Not the finest delicacies, but you can get some _interesting_ food."

"Well then, let's do it," Sebastian said with his usual enthusiasm, that Alec was finding was very infectious. Well, for him at least.

Alec watched as Sebastian stepped into the diner and looked around with his usual intense curiosity, observing the interior as if it were the first time he had ever experienced such a place. Although, in his defense, it probably was the first time he'd ever been into a diner.

"Obviously you already know Izzy and Jace, and this is Clary, Simon, Jordan, and Maia," Alec said as he pointed each person out to Sebastian, "everyone, this is Sebastian."

"The real non-evil one," Sebastian added. "Nice to meet you all."

The booth they were sitting in was a little cramped from all the people, and so Alec and Sebastian ended up being pressed up against one another, but neither of them commented on the position.

"I hope your demon hunting went better then ours, we found nothing, so we called it quits pretty quickly," Jace said, obviously frustrated by the failure.

"Well, there are five less demons in the world," Sebastian said.

"I'm amazed he actually let you fight, he's been so protective," Izzy said whilst eying her brother.

"I have not! Sorry for trying to actually to get Sebastian better," Alec replied, and Sebastian chuckled softly.

With their current position Alec could feel the vibrations coming off of Sebastian's body, and he elbowed the younger Nephilim playfully. At that moment the food the others had already ordered arrived, and Sebastian gaped at it.

"How can you eat that much?" He asked in shock, not used to American servings, which he was startled to discover were much larger than he had expected.

The others looked a little uncomfortable, not sure whether to laugh or tell Sebastian off, but Alec made the decision for them, as he smiled broadly and shook his head.

"You sound so _foreign_ when you say that," Alec told Sebastian.

"I am foreign," he replied stubbornly, but the slight upwards pull at the corners of his mouth gave away his amusement.

"You _were_ too sheltered in Paris," Alec said.

"How dare you insult my city!" Sebastian said as if outraged, but once again his smile showed he was nowhere near upset.

"I didn't realize the whole place belonged to you," Alec replied, which made Sebastian throw his head back and laugh.

"You should become and lawyer, you have a natural talent for creating come backs," Sebastian said sarcastically once he had recovered.

"It's my backup, in case shadow hunting doesn't work out," Alec said, surprising everyone, including himself, as he continued to joke with Sebastian.

He was usually the serious older brother, however that did not mean he was never playful, and Sebastian seemed to have a skill at drawing out his more spontaneous side.

"I know that there's more of us than the two of them, but I still feel like I'm third wheeling," Jordan said softly, and Alec and Sebastian were too distracted to notice his words.

"Yeah, they really get along well together…" Izzy said with a devious smile, and she looked up at Jace, and could tell he was thinking the same thing. "Who knows what will happen next…"


	7. Chapter 7

The lunch in Taki's continued as it usually would, aside from the conversation between Alec and Sebastian, that remained lighthearted, but became increasingly difficult for any of the other people at the table to join in on. Especially when the two started speaking French.

"Cut it out, aside from Jace and I no one else here speaks that language, stick to English," Izzy hissed at her brother.

"I'm just making Sebastian feel more at home," Alec mumbled back, and although he didn't mean to have Sebastian hear him, their close proximity meant that the younger shadow hunter frowned in disapproval.

"My English is perfect," Sebastian stated, but rather than bragging he simply sounded like he was stating a fact, which did happen to be true.

"Yeah, I don't think you need to make Sebastian feel any more comfortable," Izzy replied with artificial politeness.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Alec replied, speaking a little louder than he'd intended, which drew attention to the conversation he and Izzy were having.

"Nothing," Izzy said, and Alec looked at her disapprovingly, but he decided to let the discussion go, as of course he didn't particularly want to argue in front of everyone.

"Well, Clary and I are going to head out," Jace said, and his rushed tone caught Alec's attention.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"Demon hunting. I didn't get to go earlier, and as you all keep reminding me, I need as much experience as I can get," Clary said, oblivious to Jace's attempt to cover up their intentions.

"You said you weren't going hunting again!" Izzy complained.

"Wait, if they're going hunting, can we go too?" Sebastian asked Alec with too much excitement in his voice.

"I said _one_ demon hunt," Alec said firmly.

"If Jace is going hunting then I am too," Izzy said, and Alec groaned as he saw how he was losing control of the situation.

"Well Clary needs to go hunting," Jace said.

"I think it would be nice if we all went," Clary offered.

"Like a strange demon slaying bonding exercise," Simon said, and Izzy hit him playfully.

"We're not _that _strange," she said.

"I said one hunt," Alec repeated, although his voice had lost most of its authority, and he now sounded like he was pleading rather than ordering.

"And we will go on one hunt, one _more_ hunt," Sebastian said with glee, once again using his 'puppy dog eyes'.

Alec groaned in frustration, and then sighed in defeat.

"Fine, we'll go hunting, it is our obligation after all," Alec said, "_but_, everyone has to be home by midnight."

"Thanks Alec," Izzy said, offering her brother one of her brightest smiles.

"Why is it always midnight? Couldn't you choose a generally less creepy time of night," Simon muttered, making Maia laugh.

Simon smiled at Maia's reaction, but soon stopped as he saw Izzy glaring at him. He decided that things between the three of them were never going to be normal.

"One more rule," Alec said, and Jace rolled his eyes, which Alec chose to ignore, "we all stick together."

"Five minutes! _Five_ minutes! We managed to stay as a group for five minutes!" Alec said as he ran through the city streets with Sebastian.

As soon as they'd started hunting the group of Nephilim had run into a pack of Ravenor demons, and together they'd chased them into an old building. Just as the Nephilim had closed in on the demons, the floor had collapsed, separating Sebastian and Alec from the rest of the group. Unfortunately all fifteen demons had also been separated with the two Nephilim, who were now blindly running through the streets of New York in an attempt to find a better place to face the demons. They had decided that fighting whilst cornered in a collapsing building would not be the safest option.

"Your city is falling apart!" Sebastian declared as he saw the state of some of the buildings they rushed past.

A screech from one of the demons cut off whatever response Alec was planning on making, and he stopped running, with Sebastian following suit. They both turned towards the demons, and Alec quickly grabbed his bow from where it was slung over his shoulder, and got ready to fire. As the demons rounded the corner and came into range of Alec's bow, the assault started, with Sebastian helping by using the daggers he was now very thankful for bringing with him. Three of the demons managed to get past the two Nephilim's first line of defense, and after flashing Alec a reassuring smile, Sebastian drew his sword, and attacked. Sebastian quickly killed one, whilst pushing another into Alec's range, breathing a small sigh of relief as Alec immediately shot it down. Finally Sebastian killed the last demon, and turned to Alec, breathing heavily, but still smiling. It wasn't the kind of manic and empty smile Jace sometimes had after he'd slain something, which Alec was glad to note had become less common since Clary's arrival. Instead, Sebastian just appeared genuinely happy, both to still be unharmed and to have been fighting alongside Alec.

"Where are we?" Sebastian asked as Alec put his bow back over his shoulder.

"Brooklyn," Akec said, and he then frowned as he realised just how close they'd ended up to where Magnus used to live.

Alec was also amazed at how he hadn't noticed where they had ended up, after so many times visiting the neighbourhood.

"Isn't this where your ex used to live, the old High Warlock?" Sebastian asked, having picked up on Alec's change in mood.

"Yes, very near here."

"You okay?"

Alec didn't answer for a little while, as he appeared lost in thought.

"You know what, I think I actually am," Alec replied, and he meant it.

This was the first time since Magnus had broken up with him that Alec had returned to Brooklyn without a heavy heart, feeling as if he were on the verge of breaking down.

"I'm glad to hear that," Sebastian said.

"So am I. Come on, let's go try and find the others, I don't feel like staying in Brooklyn anymore."

"More demons?" Alec asked pointlessly as he saw Jace, Izzy and Clary fighting another group of demons, although Alec wasn't sure what species, just that they had lots of very large claws.

On closer inspection it appeared that Jace and Izzy were fighting, whilst Jace also tried to defend Clary and keep her away from most of the demons, whilst she loudly protested.

"Nice team work," Sebastian said with amusement.

Alec shook his head fondly at his family, and then he and Sebastian launched themselves into the fight. Now that they were out in the open air of the street rather than the old building Alec and Sebastian had left the others in, the fighting was much easier, however the demons seemed to comprehend that they were losing, which was making their actions desperate and unpredictable. One of the demons started to twist and turn as Jace tried to stab it, only becoming further infuriated as it saw Jace's increasing glow. Eventually it reeled back, knocking Sebastian off of the ground just as he gave a killing blow to another demon. Sebastian grabbed onto what he guessed was the tail of the demon, trying not to panic as he was raised higher and higher into the air. Alec's attention was drawn to Sebastian's predicament, and before Jace could kill the demon, an arrow pierced through its skull. As the demon disappeared, Sebastian felt his stomach drop as he looked at the distance between him and the ground, and he then fell. Luckily for him he had someone to cushion his fall. Unluckily for the eldest shadow hunter, Sebastian happened to fall on Alec. Alec groaned in protest as Sebastian collapsed on top of him, and by the time both boys regained themselves, they realised that they were looking into each other's eyes, whilst positioned on top of each other, and neither of them were moving, until Alec eventually came to his senses.

"Uh, Sebastian, I know you just fell, but would you mind…?"

"Oh yeah, right," Sebastian said in a strained voice as he rolled off of Alec and lay on the floor trying to get his breath back.

As Alec stood, and then helped Sebastian to his feet, he was relieved to see all of the demons were dead, and everyone else seemed fine.

"This is why I said you shouldn't go hunting again," Alec stated as he saw Sebastian trying to stretch his bruised limbs out.

"This is the best I've felt all week," Sebastian replied.

Alec gave him a disapproving look, but there was still a glimmer of amusement in his eyes that showed he was actually glad for the demon hunting.

"Okay, _now_ we're going home," Alec said, and everyone decided that this wasn't the time or place to argue.

"So, where did you two end up, with the Ravenors?" Jace asked as they all started to head home.

"Brooklyn," Sebastian said, "and I did not like it there."

"Neither do I," Alec agreed, which earned a few surprised looks from the others.

The other Nephilim also noticed Sebastian's small smile, and the way his eyes lingered on Alec for longer than they should have. Still, no one said anything, and let Alec and Sebastian walk ahead of the group, their words easily passing between each other, and the whole world seeming to fall away for an instant, so that there were just the two of them, exchanging secretive smiles in the darkness of the night.

**A/N** Sorry for the longer time between updates, I'm currently doing exams so I don't have as much time on my hands. Thank you for the reviews, the more the merrier (and yes they do make me write faster).


	8. Chapter 8

For the first time in a too long, Alec slept well. The demon hunt had exhausted him, which had turned out to be exactly what he needed, and for some reason Alec found that he no longer had a heavy heart, in fact all of his regrets appeared to have vanished. Alec wasn't sure when exactly he'd stopped missing Magnus, but since Sebastian had arrived Alec had become increasingly distracted by the charismatic young man, and at some point the excitement he felt around the Nephilim had replaced the longing Alec used to feel for Magnus. Alec hadn't thought too much about the significance of no longer desiring Magnus, and at first he was just slowly adjusting to not having the warlock around, but now he didn't miss him at all. He knew that Magnus had been his first love, but now that the emotional rollercoaster he'd had with the warlock was over, Alec felt peaceful. Magnus would always be important to him, Alec supposed, as he was the first person to get Alec to come out of his shell, but he'd also been the first person to break Alec's heart, and now he actually agreed with what Magnus had said, he did think that it was better if they didn't see each other again.

Alec had supposed that these revelations would have been more heartbreaking, but he felt relief wash over him as he realised he was _finally_ moving on from the warlock. Alec had also mused that perhaps such deep insights into his own life wouldn't come when he was brushing his teeth of all things. Alec quickly got ready for the day, and he was about to leave his room when he glanced down at the usual clothes he was wearing; faded jeans and a shirt with a hole in it. Alec frowned, and walked back into his room, for some reason deciding he should make a bit more of an effort. Alec didn't know why, but he seemed to care more about how he appeared since Sebastian had shown up, and now that the young shadow hunter was looking normal again the only reason that Alec didn't look like a walking fashion crises next to him was because Sebastian _still _didn't have any clothes that fit him. Alec supposed that at some point that situation would have to be corrected, but for the moment he focused on finding something in his wardrobe that didn't look like it had been eaten by moths.

Eventually Alec entered the kitchen wearing a pair of dark skinny jeans Izzy had given him at some point, and shirt that he had been told was _meant_ to look too tight. Alec of course didn't really understand why someone would wear clothes that hugged the body so tightly, but he entrusted the taste of others when it came to what to wear.

"Are you wearing new clothes?" Jace asked the second he saw Alec, who ducked his head to avoid the glances he was now receiving from his siblings.

Sebastian seemed to be teaching Izzy how to cook something, although judging by the horrified look on Sebastian's face it was not going too well.

"Why does Alec get new clothes whilst I have to make do-" Sebastain suddenly stopped speaking as he turned and actually looked at Alec, his eyes quickly raking up and down Alec's muscular body, which was shown off perfectly by the clothes he was wearing.

Alec was instantly glad for deciding to put in the effort, and his heart gave a strange stutter as he watched Sebastian's reaction. He was usually oblivious to such actions, but even he had to admit that Sebastian's eyes were lingering, and in response Alec felt himself flush. Yet again he cursed his pale skin, reminding himself that Sebastian probably wasn't checking him out, or anything like that, and was most likely just surprised to see him wearing an acceptable outfit.

"You look…nice," Sebastian eventually said, and he cleared his throat as he turned back to the cooking, noticing the way that Izzy and Jace seemed to raise one eyebrow almost in unison.

"Th-thanks," Alec stammered, internally yelling at himself for stuttering.

Alec had no idea why he even cared about Sebastian's opinion so much, they had become friends over the week he'd been staying in New York, but Alec had never thought of anything else happening between them. Anyway, there'd been no indication that Sebastian was even gay, and so Alec quickly dismissed his line of thought.

"Speaking of new clothes, Sebastian really needs to get some, I'm sick of loaning out my stuff," Jace said as he watched Sebastian, who's height meant that he was stretching out the shirts that he borrowed off of Jace.

"I don't enjoy having to wear your clothes either," Sebastian muttered.

"It's settled then, Sebastian and Alec will go shopping today," Izzy stated.

"What? Why do _I_ have to go?" Alec asked as he sat down and awaited whatever food was being made, a service he was getting very used.

"Jace and I are busy, and you also need some new clothes. I'm planning on burning every piece of clothing I find in your wardrobe with holes in it," Izzy said as she once again tried to become more involved with the cooking, but was quickly dismissed as Sebastian attempted to save the dish.

"Why does everyone care so much about what I wear?" Alec muttered, making Sebastian chuckle.

"Well, the tighter the clothes are, the easier it is to picture you naked," Sebastian said with a sly grin, causing Alec to blush again.

"Is that something you do often, Sebastian?" Jace asked expectantly.

"Jace!" Alec said as he glared at his brother.

Sebastian turned back to the cooking, although Izzy could see the small smile on his face that seemed to be his silent answer of 'yes' to Jace's question.

"You're not busy today," Jace said once he and Izzy were alone in the kitchen together, as both Sebastian and Alec had disappeared to go get ready for their forced shopping trip.

"What are you talking about?" Izzy replied in a guarded tone.

"I know for a fact you're not out with Simon because he and Clary are hanging out together today," Jace replied, looking a little annoyed at the fact he wouldn't be able to see Clary.

"Fine, I was lying."

"Why?" Jace asked, clearly confused.

"Oh come on, there is totally something going on between Alec and Sebastian."

"So you think _shopping_ is going to bring them together?" Jace said sarcastically.

"They have had hardly any alone time together, and every time there's just the two of them, sparks fly. You can't tell me you haven't noticed," Izzy said, sounding proud that she was secretly setting her brother up.

"Izzy," Jace said in a warning tone, knowing how much she enjoyed becoming involved in other people's lives.

"Don't you think they're sweet together? And it's not like I'm actually doing anything…I'm just giving them some privacy," Izzy said with an innocent expression that didn't set well with the general mischief she often caused.

"Well, it's pretty obvious that Sebastian likes Alec…and Alec has been happier lately…" Jace thought out loud.

"I bet you that by the end of today they'll have at least kissed," Izzy declared.

"What? No, that is not going to happen with Alec. He was stuttering again this morning, there is no way the two of them are going to get together just like that," Jace said dismissively.

"Oh yeah because Alec wasted heaps of time before starting to date Magnus," Izzy pointed out.

"That was different, he's an 800 year old warlock, he probably magicked Alec into it or something," Jace said, his disdain for the warlock showing.

"Fifty bucks says I'm right," Izzy challenged, and with a smirk Jace nodded.

"You're on," he said, and quickly went quiet when he saw Alec and Sebastian walking together, both boys smiling slightly.

"Don't have too much fun today," Izzy called after them as Alec and Sebastian left the Institute, however neither of the Nephilim even noticed that Jace and Izzy were there, being far too wrapped up in each other.


	9. Chapter 9

"You look like you're about to be executed," Sebastian said as he watched Alec grimace as they walked into the shopping center.

"This is truly my idea of hell," Alec said as he watched all of the mundanes rush around them, oblivious that they were walking past two men who dedicated their lives to protecting them from demons.

"We'll be in and out before you know it," Sebastian said, also starting to look a little overwhelmed by the crowds.

"You don't like shopping?" Alec asked curiously, following Sebastian as he made his way into the first store.

Sebastian shrugged his shoulders, picking up a pair of jeans and inspecting them carefully.

"Clothes are a necessity, and I'm not opposed to wearing nice clothes…I just don't understand why people spend so much time and money on them," Sebastian said casually, confused when he saw how Alec grinned at his response.

"You have no idea how nice it is to be with someone who isn't obsessed with clothes," Alec said, "My sister is insane about hair, makeup, accessorizing…and my ex, he was always trying to make me wear colourful and _sparkly_ stuff."

Alec felt relieved as he simply referred to Magnus as his 'ex' and his heart no longer had any reaction to the thought of the warlock.

"Seriously? Glitter? Isn't that a bit, I don't know, tacky?" Sebastian asked, and Alec chuckled in response.

"You have no idea."

"Didn't you sister say you had to buy clothes too?" Sebastian asked as he seemed to find a top he liked.

"Yeah, but I usually just ignore her," Alec said with a smirk.

"Here, close your eyes," Sebastian said as he placed his hands over Alec's face, "and point at five things. We'll let fate decide what clothes you should wear."

Alec wanted to laugh at the ridiculous idea, but he was suddenly acutely aware of how close Sebastian was, and he could feel the other boy's body pressed up against his, and his breath against his neck as Sebastian spoke. The only thing Alec could think to do was nod and follow Sebastian's instructions, missing his presence once he felt the younger man move off and collect the items Alec had pointed out. When he opened his eyes Alec saw that Sebastian was holding a dark blue singlet, a plaid shirt, two pairs of skinny blue jeans and a pair of grey boots that Alec figured were purposefully made to look worn as some kind of fashion statement.

"Not bad choices, of course I had to fiddle with the sizes a little, but aside from that, chance hasn't got bad taste" Sebastian said as he went back to picking out some clothes for himself.

"What about you, you're not going to let the universe decide?" Alec said with a hint of sarcasm.

"I have been letting you and Jace dress me in clothes that don't fit, I think I deserve to pick out some stuff I actually like," Sebastian said as he casually slung his arm around Alec's shoulder, smirking as he saw that Alec didn't resist the action, but rather subconsciously lent into him more.

"I'm just going to try some of these on," Sebastian said after a moment, and he quickly ran off to the change rooms, leaving Alec to wander around the store.

As he did so he wasn't really paying attention, his thoughts still lingering on Sebastian, and he accidentally walked into someone.

"Oh, sorry, I wasn't looking," Alec muttered as he picked up the clothes he'd dropped.

"That's quite alright gorgeous, anyone as dashing as you can knock me off my feet any day," the man that Alec had bumped into said with a wink.

"Uhhh…" was the only sound that escaped Alec's lips as he was taken back by the obvious flirting, which not even Alec could miss.

"Come on babe, let me get your number," the guy said persistently, and Alec suddenly felt cornered.

"Ummm…thanks…but I'm not…interested," Alec said as he turned from the man, however the stranger did not give up easily, and he blocked Alec's exit by standing in front of him again.

"Didn't you hear him, he's not interested," Sebastian said as he appeared behind Alec.

"Oh sorry, didn't realize there was something going on between you, should have known someone so handsome would already be taken," the man said, and with a final glance at Alec he walked off, leaving the older shadow hunter very confused.

"I leave you alone for five minutes," Sebastian said jokingly, although he looked a little tense.

"Oh sorry," Alec said, "I should have corrected him."

"What? Oh when he said we were together?" Sebastian asked, looking more somber as Alec seemed offended by the idea.

"Yeah, you probably don't want people to think that you're, you know…"

"Yes, of course, I get it, there's no reason you'd want people to think we're dating," Sebastian said quickly.

"Wait, what? I thought you wouldn't want people to think you're gay," Alec said in a puzzled tone.

"Why would I care about that? I know the Clave's still touchy on the topic, but _he_ was obviously okay with being open about sexuality."

"I thought…" Alec said, not sure what Sebastian was saying about himself.

"Oh shit, you thought I was straight?" Sebastian said in alarm, realising that all of his attempts at flirting and trying to capture Alec's attention would have been a lost cause if the other boy didn't know he was interested in his gender.

"You're not?" Alec asked. "Sorry, I'm not very good at telling these things," he quickly mumbled as he became embarrassed, and as usual his face started to heat up.

Sebastian just shook his head and chuckled, feeling himself swoon as he saw Alec's adorable blush appear.

"To be fair I did hear about you from gossip in Idris before I even came to New York."

"Then what did you mean, about me not wanting people to think we're dating?" Alec asked remembering Sebastian's earlier words.

Sebastian looked like a dear caught in headlights for a moment, and he quickly debated whether to tell Alec the truth or just shrug the situation off. Now or never, Sebastian decided.

"I kind of have a confession to make," the younger Nephilim said, looking up at Alec with his usual cheeky expression again, "I _am_ interested in you, which is why I didn't correct that guy."

"Oh," Alec said, cringing at his own useless reaction.

"I understand of course if it's a one sided thing," Sebastian quickly added, some of his playfulness slipping away as he awaited a proper response from Alec.

Alec didn't know what to say, as all of the strange excitement and happiness he felt around Sebastian started to make sense in his mind, and he understood that it _definitely_ was reciprocal. Still, no actual appropriate words came to Alec's mind, as yet again his brain failed to offer him with anything useful, aside from the fact that his attention was now drawn towards Sebastian's lips as the younger boy licked them subconsciously. Alec didn't remember having another logical thought after that, just that his lips were suddenly connected with Sebastian's in a gentle kiss that the other man immediately responded to.

**A/N** Hope you liked the first romantic moment between the two shadow hunter boys, please review if you want more, as I love the feedback and it will make me update sooner!


	10. Chapter 10

Sebastian froze for no more than a second, the feeling of Alec's lips on his own surprising him, but also instantly bringing him to life. It was only a chaste kiss, as Alec quickly pulled aware to ensure that he hadn't made a mistake, although the giddy grin that Sebastian wore seemed to suggest that he had enjoyed it.

"Sorry, my panic mode over relationships often results in me kissing people," Alec said after a moment of silence between the two.

"Don't apologise," Sebastian said as he made eye contact with Alec. "If we weren't still standing in the middle of a store I would be showing you just how appreciative I am."

Alec felt his cheeks flush once again, and he ducked his head, although Sebastian still saw the smirk playing on the older man's lips.

"Let's pay for these things and get out of here," Sebastian said as he tentatively intertwined his hand with Alec's, which only led to his blush becoming more prominent, yet he also smiled and tightened his grip.

"I am so bored," Jace said as he watched Izzy curl her eyelashes in preparation for her planned date with Simon that night.

"What is the point of that anyway?" Jace asked as Izzy continued what he saw as a trivial task.

"You sound like Alec when you say that," Izzy said as she put down the curler. "Speaking of which, our dear brother has been gone for quite a while now."

"Yeah well Sebastian is probably having to drag Alec around kicking and screaming," Jace said.

"Ooh, maybe there'll be some screaming from them both tonight," Izzy said with a wiggle of her eyebrows, and laughed as Jace blanched.

"That is _not_ happening, and you are not winning this bet. Even if the two like each other, Alec does not have the guts to let anything happen so quickly," Jace stated.

Izzy pursed her lips at the remark, and turned her head as she heard the sound of the front door of the Institute.

"We'll see about that," Izzy said as she then shifted her attention to the two men who had entered the room. "So, how was your day?"

Alec and Sebastian looked like they had suddenly been pulled from their own private world, and were shocked to be in the presence of others, and they exchanged a knowing smile over Izzy's question, although neither boy felt ready to share their newfound discoveries just yet.

"We got clothes," Sebastian said as he gestured to the bags the two boys were carrying.

"You actually got Alec to buy _clothes_?" Izzy asked in shock.

"It really wasn't that hard," Sebastian said.

"Maybe not for you," Jace mumbled.

"So…anything else happen?" Izzy said suggestively.

Sebastian looked shocked by the question as he was amazed by Izzy's intuition, and he gave Alec a quick glance.

"Oh, you know, this and that," Sebastian said cryptically. "Who wants lunch?"

Izzy and Jace instantly noticed the sudden change in topic, and gave Alec a suspicious look, although the eldest Nephilim was one only paying attention to Sebastian.

"I have _so_ won this bet," Izzy said as she followed the boys into the kitchen, and Jace just shook his head as he too followed.

"Here, you aren't chopping the chocolate fine enough," Sebastian said as he watched Alec work.

After dinner Sebastian had learnt that Alec had never had chocolate brownies before, and he was appalled by the revelation. The younger shadow hunter had then taken it upon himself to not only make them for Alec, but also teach the other Nephilim the process. He now stood behind Alec, guiding the hand holding the knife to show the other boy how it was done properly, however both men soon found themselves distracted by the short distance between them.

"Like this?" Alec asked as he started to chop up the chocolate into finer pieces, whilst also pushing himself against the other shadow hunter more, a forthright move that Sebastian was not expecting. It seemed that Alec was full of surprises, and although he was often quite shy, it appeared that as he became more comfortable with Sebastian he was starting to his interest in the other man more obvious.

"Yeah, that's good," Sebatsian said in a slightly huskier tone, and he quickly stepped away from Alec as Izzy waltzed into the kitchen, oblivious to the atmosphere in the room.

"Alec, have you seen my new shoes?" She asked in a flustered voice.

"What do you they look like?" Alec asked.

"Oh, never mind!" Izzy said as she threw up her hands in exasperation, and then stormed out.

"What? I didn't even do anything," Alec mumbled as Izzy left, and Sebastian chuckled at the scene.

"It's strange being in an Institute that is so full of life," Sebastian said. "In Paris we never had any visitors, and of course I have no siblings, so it was always so…quiet."

"Having brothers and sisters isn't easy," Alec replied softly.

"No, but it is nicer than being alone," Sebastian said with more seriousness than was usually present in his words.

"You can stay here, even after the Clave decides that you've learnt to be a 'proper' shadow hunter, or whatever it is they want from you. You're always welcome here, if you don't want to go back to Paris, that is," Alec said, his voice becoming softer as he continued to speak and his cheeks heated up.

"Thank you," Sebastian said with a wide grin, and he stepped towards Alec again, linking his arms around the older shadow hunter's waist, and placing a gentle kiss on Alec's cheek, which made Alec smile.

"Hey you, no distracting the person with the knife," Alec said as he finished preparing the chocolate.

"I didn't realize you found me _so_ distracting," Sebastian said as he started to return to the task of cooking, and Alec was content to stand back and watch as Sebastian glided around the kitchen.

"Well, I don't just kiss anyone you know," Alec replied, and he was rewarded by Sebastian flashing him a quick lop sided smile, that had its usual affect in making Alec's heart speed up.

"Alec! Did you move my handbag?" Izzy yelled from the hallway, and Alec was surprised to hear that she hadn't left yet.

"Izzy, why would I touch your bag? Why don't you just use a different one if you can't find it?" Alec replied.

"I can't do that Alec! Argh, you just don't understand!" Izzy replied in a dismissive tone, and Alec heard the sound of her healed shoes as she ran up the stairs, most likely back to her bedroom.

"You dealt with that one well," Sebastian said teasingly, although his tone was still light and warm.

"There's not much you can do when she gets like this," Alec muttered as he moved closer to inspect the now completed brownie mixture.

"Perhaps it's because you 'just don't understand'," Sebastian said overdramatically, making Alec laugh, although he was aware that he shouldn't be amused by someone making fun of his sister, and so in retaliation he dipped his finger into the brownie batter, and rubbed it through Sebastian's hair.

The younger boy was completely shocked by the action from the usually responsible older sibling, but soon recovered, and placed his hand into the chocolately mixture, and ran it down Alec's face and neck, laughed as Alec's mouth formed a comical 'O'.

"Now you're in for it," Alec said in an obviously fake menacing voice, and he grabbed the bowl of mixture, and dumped it on Sebastian's head.

Instead of being the least bit concerned Sebastian just threw his head back and laughed, which of course made Alec laugh as well.

"You look ridiculous," Alec said once he'd calmed down, and Sebastian nodded in agreement as he reached out his hand and trailed a finger along Alec's face, collecting some of the mixture still there.

He then placed his finger in his mouth, knowingly sucking on it a little longer than was necessary, and noticing how Alec's cheeks flushed slightly.

"Not bad," Sebastian said after a moment, and he then leaned forward and kissed Alec, the taste of chocolate mixing between the two.

Sebastian moaned as Alec deepened the kiss, something he hadn't been able to do in the store, but had longed for, ever since their first quick kiss. Their kiss was prevented from becoming too heated however as suddenly Izzy's voice cut through the room.

"Jace! You owe me fifty dollars!"

**A/N** So here's another romantic moment between the two…please review if you want more updates quicker! Also, I would love to hear your thoughts on possibly increasing the rating of the story.


	11. Chapter 11

Jace walked into the room ready to disprove Izzy's words, when he took in the scene. Alec and Sebastian had jumped away from each other, but the guilty blushes on both boy's faces paired with the cheeky smirk on Sebastian's face, that he was obviously trying to hide, showed just what they'd been caught doing.

"Did a bomb go off in here?" Jace asked as he looked at the kitchen.

There was brownie mixture covering the floor and countertops, although the majority of it was still caked into Sebastian's hair. There were still a few drops running down his face and shoulders, and the overall appearance seemed to suit Sebastian's sometimes mischievous manor.

"I dropped the bowl," Alec said, still refusing to look up at his siblings.

"On Sebastian's head?" Izzy asked in a disbelieving tone.

"Yes?" Alec replied.

"And I'm sure it was all an accident," Jace said sarcastically, and Sebastian stifled a laugh.

Alec nudged Sebastian, but this only made the younger boy laugh more, and soon Alec started to softly chuckle as well, once again not being able to resist the carefree nature that Sebastian seemed to draw out of him.

"And so then the two of you just accidentally locked lips?" Izzy asked, remembering the bet.

"No, that _definitely _was not an accident," Sebastian said, smiling at Alec.

"Dammit," Jace said as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Alec asked as Jace reluctantly handed over his money to Izzy. "Did the two of you have a _bet_?"

"Yeah, and thanks to you two I just lost," Jace grumbled.

"Ooh, I can use this to pay for dinner tonight! Oh, you're so generous Jace, paying for my date with Simon," Izzy said as she then turned and made her way out of the Institute, presumably to meet Simon.

Jace then looked back at Alec and Sebastian, and noticed that at some point the two men had linked hands, and were looking at each other as if Jace didn't exist.

"So, are you two, like dating now or something?" Jace asked awkwardly.

"I guess so," Alec said, watching Sebastian and judging the other boy's reaction.

"We will be once your brother agrees to go out with me," Sebastian said, flashing one of his signature smiles as Alec chuckled softly.

"Right, good, okay then, I'm going to, uh, go now…have fun," Jace said as he also left the kitchen, suddenly feeling completely out of place.

"Perhaps siblings aren't always that great," Sebastian said once Jace was out of sight.

"We'll just have to be more careful. I'd rather not mentally scar them," Alec said, and Sebastian laughed softly as he pulled Alec closer by the belt loops in his jeans.

"Well I think we've scared them off for now," Sebastian whispered against Alec's ear, and he then took the lobe into his mouth and sucked on it gently.

Alec gasped and pressed himself closer to Sebastian, connecting their lips once Sebastian let go of Alec's earlobe. Alec's hands went to Sebastian hips, whilst Sebastian's hands slipped under then hem of Alec's shirt and started to trace his muscled torso, his fingertips lightly teasing the skin. Alec nipped at Sebastian's bottom lip, asking for entrance, which the other boy gladly gave, and as their tongues met they battled for dominance. Sebastian gave in shortly, moaning as Alec took control and lightly pushed him against the kitchen counter. Sebastian pulled Alec's shirt up, and Alec quickly tugged the garment off, disconnecting his lips from Sebastian's for a moment. Instead of reconnecting their lips Sebastian started to kiss along Alec's jaw and neck, smirking as the older shadow hunter tilted his chin up to allow Sebastian easier access. As Sebastian continued to travel further down Alec's body his lips came to Alec's Adam's apple, and he stopped there to suck at the sensitive skin with more vigor, and as he did so reached up one of his hands to Alec's nipple, rolling his fingers over it until he earned a delectable moan from Alec, who also thrust his hips forward subconsciously. Sebastian groaned at the contact, and pushed himself flush against Alec until the two were impossibly close. It was at that moment that Alec's brain finally started to catch up with his body, however the pure lust driving him still meant that Alec wanted to suppress the rational thoughts in his mind that were telling him this was going too fast. He wanted what he had with Sebastian to last, on not be just some rebound fling that was over the same day it had begun.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Sebastian asked, having sensed Alec's sudden hesitation.

"I just think this is going a bit fast," Alec whispered, and he cursed himself for voicing his opinion as he felt his desire continue to overwhelm him.

"Yeah, I know, sorry, I just…find it very hard to keep my hands off of you," Sebastian said cheekily, however he did put some distance between himself and Alec, who then also stepped away so that the younger man wasn't trapped between him and the counter any longer.

Alec chuckled at that, and his voice was deeper than usual as he tried to regain himself.

"About what Jace was saying, about dating," Sebastian said, "I just realised I never actually asked you… would you like to go out with me?"

"Yeah, I really would," Alec said, and then laughed at their slightly absurd situation. "Now we just have to figure out what we should do about this mess."

"I don't see anything wrong," Sebastian said, looking over the kitchen as if he was oblivious to the chaos around him.

"Sebastian, I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure this isn't how you make brownies."

**A/N** The next chapter will be Alec and Sebastian's first date, so please review if you want to see what shenanigans the two will get up to!


	12. Chapter 12

Sebastian paced around his room as he waited for it to finally be eight pm. He and Alec had decided that it was probably best if the eldest boy organized their date for that night seeing as Sebastian had only been out into New York twice, and knew next to nothing about the place. Alec had seemed to have made a plan, but he was being rather cryptic about the whole ordeal, and then Sebastian had barely seen him that day as he'd been busy training with Jace, and doing other trivial tasks around the Institute. With the Lightwood parents being notably absent the responsibilities of running the Institute had fallen to Alec, and so far he was dealing with the pressure very well. He was actually already used to taking care of things in the family, as he had practically raised his siblings, and having the authority to run the Institute had ended up making his life and decisions easier as he no longer had to deal with his constantly busy parents every time there was a small issue.

Sebastian finally stopped walking around his room when he heard a knock on his door, and he felt his heart flutter slightly at the thought that it was probably Alec. Sebastian didn't usually get nervous about these kinds of things, but with everything going so well between him and Alec he really didn't want anything to go wrong. As Sebastian opened his door he was disappointed to see Izzy on the other side instead of her older brother.

"Alec's ready and waiting for you downstairs," Izzy said, although she blocked Sebastian's path as he went to meet Alec. "There are just a few things I would like you to know before you start dating my brother. Firstly, if you hurt him I know a great place to hide a body. Secondly, Jace also knows a few handy ways to make someone disappear. Thirdly, he is an amazing guy he deserves to be happy. And finally, I will literally pay you for details on what goes on between the two of you."

Sebastian wasn't sure how to respond to Izzy's statement, as part of him wanted to laugh, whilst another part of him was genuinely concerned about living under the same roof as Alec's siblings.

"I really like Alec, and I would not intentionally do anything to hurt him, I promise. I'm also aware of how special he is, but I do think that I can make him happy, and if I didn't I wouldn't be going out with him," Sebastian said eventually, and Izzy seemed to approve of his answer as she finally stepped out of his way.

Sebastian practically ran down the stairs to see Alec, who was wearing the new clothes they'd bought the day before. Sebastian couldn't help but take the sight before him in, as Alec was wearing a singlet that left little to the imagination as his muscular chest was clearly displayed. Sebastian's gaze halted as he saw that Alec was holding a picnic basket, and he looked back up at Alec's face in confusion.

"As sweet as a picnic sounds, aren't they supposed to happen during the day?" He asked, and Alec shrugged his shoulders.

"Traditionally, yes, but I have something different planned," Alec replied.

"Well aren't you just full of surprises," Sebastian said in a lower voice as he moved closer to Alec, and he bridged the distance between them as he connected their lips.

It wasn't an overly passionate kiss, just a quick reminder for both boys how much they had missed each other's presence, as even though they lived under the same roof, any time apart seemed like a lifetime.

"Ready to go?" Alec asked.

"Just have to grab my dagger from the other room," Sebastian said, as of course a shadow hunter never went anywhere, even to a picnic, without some kind of weapon.

As Sebastian strolled into the living room he was surprised to see Jace there, passing Sebastian's dagger between his hands.

"Uh, hey there Jace, do you mind if I grab that?" Sebastian asked, aware of the slightly creepy circumstance he was in.

Jace stood up from his position, where he'd been cloaked in the shadows of the room, and stepped into the light, and slowly handed over the blade.

"Sebastian, I'm sure you're a great guy," Jace said as he pulled the dagger away from Sebastian at the last second, "but just know, if you do _anything_ to Alec, I, potentially one of the most temperamental and dangerous shadow hunters, will find you."

"Izzy kind of already gave me this speech, and I'll tell you what I told her; I am not planning on hurting Alec because I _really_ like him. I'm not like his ex, I'm not going to go and break his heart," Sebastian said, and Jace nodded as he finally gave Sebastian the dagger.

"Well then, in that case, have fun."

Alec watched as Sebastian absorbed everything as they walked through the city. The younger man always seemed fascinated by everything around him, like he had retained that childhood wonder that made the world constantly exciting. Alec led Sebastian through central park, which at this time of night was far less busy, however he still led Sebastian away from the usual path.

"Is this all part of the plan?" Sebastian asked as the two started to walk towards a giant hedge.

"Trust me," Alec said, and he then stepped through the plant.

Sebastian shrugged his shoulders and stepped through, surprised when he found that the plant was nothing more than an illusion that disappeared from his eyes the second he touched it. Sebastian gasped as he looked up and saw where Alec had brought him, and the older shadow hunter laughed softly as Sebastian looked completely amazed. They were in a small clearing that was surrounded by small glowing lights and various plants that Sebastian had never seen the likes of before. There were flowers in various colours, which were glowing in the dark, and as Sebastian stepped closer to them they leaned up, as if curious about the Nephilim.

"What is this place?" Sebastian asked as he eventually sat down next to Alec on the _blue_ grass.

"It used to be one of the old entrances to the Seelie Court. All of these smaller access points were slowly closed off over time to 'protect' the Court, but the influence of the fey still remains around them," Alec explained.

"How did you even find this place?" Sebastian asked as he looked back at Alec, whose face was lit up from the strange glow of the lights around them.

"I accidentally stumbled across it one day when I was following Jace, trying to get him out of trouble. I never told anybody about it, and I always come here whenever I needed to escape and clear my head."

"So, does that mean you've never brought anybody else here?" Sebastian asked curiously, and Alec smiled and shook his head.

"No, you're my first."

Sebastian leaned forward and kissed Alec softly, their lips gently connecting as Sebastian communicated his thanks in a way words could not.

"I'm glad you did share this place with me, it's truly amazing, and I've never seen anything like it," Sebastian whispered once the two pulled away.

He spoke softly for the rest of the night, almost as if he was worried he would break the illusion of such a beautiful place if he was too boisterous. The two passed the night away chatting and laughing, and generally forgetting the chaotic world around them. The pair of shadow hunters eventually decided to leave only when the sky started to light up again, and Alec and Sebastian realised that they had spent the whole night together without even noticing.

**A/N** Sorry about how short the last chapter was, so here's a longer one. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please continue to review. Hopefully I'll be updating the next chapter very soon! Also, I have started a new story, In Any Other World, so if you're interested please check it out.


	13. Chapter 13

Alec hadn't snuck into the Institute too many times, especially when compared to his siblings, and perhaps that was why he and Sebastian were detected the moment they stepped through the doors of the Lightwood home. It was early morning by the time Alec and Sebastian eventually returned from their date, and both Isabelle and Jace were well and truly awake, and had noticed the absence of the two other shadow hunters. As soon as Alec turned back from closing the door behind him he found himself faced with both of his siblings, and he knew in that moment that the peaceful atmosphere between him and Sebastian was lost. Isabelle looked like she was ready to take notes on every detail of the night Alec and Sebastian had shared, and although Alec appreciated how much his sister cared, he often found himself drawing the line on which information was too personal. Jace appeared nowhere near as pleased as Izzy, in fact he looked rather annoyed with the eldest Nephilim.

"Alec, we were meant to have training this morning!" Jace complained, shooting Sebastian a dark look.

"Oh never mind that Jace, I need details," Izzy said, pushing Jace out of the way.

"Shadow hunting is more important than hearing about Alec's love life," Jace said, and Alec internally groaned as the usual family drama started.

"I agree," Alec said, "I'll just go up and get changed, and then I'll be down in a moment to train."

Jace seemed content with this answer, and quickly went to the training room, knowing that Alec would take the shortest amount of time possible to get dressed.

It soon turned out that Jace was wrong, as it took half an hour for Alec to finally arrive at the training room.

"By the Angel, what took you so long? All you had to was throw on your usual gear," Jace said as he watched Alec enter the room.

"I had to have a shower," Alec mumbled in response, and as Jace got a closer look he noticed that Alec was not wearing what he normally did.

Alec and Jace had already planned to go out hunting later that day, so both were dressed in their proper gear, rather than just comfy clothes to train in, however Alec was not wearing his normal attire. Alec had always worn the loosest and least revealing clothes as was possible, which with leather was always a challenge, yet Alec managed to remain quite conservative with his shadow hunting apparel. Well, he usually did, but Jace noticed that he was wearing much tighter clothing, which he had put aside as too tight before, but now seemed ready to embrace. Also, instead of simply tugging on what he was going to wear Alec looked like he had at least pulled a comb through his hair, and he did indeed look like he was fresh out of the shower. All in all such actions would not have been noticeable unless one was familiar with Alec's usual habits, and Jace definitely noticed the difference. Before Jace had a chance to ask why he'd made the effort, Sebastian walked into the training room.

"Sebastian… what are you doing?" Jace asked slowly as he saw that the other boy was also in gear.

"Training, which people usually do in the training room," Sebastian said as he stood next to Alec.

"Yeah but…I thought it was just going to be Alec and I," Jace said as he looked at his parabatai.

"What? Why would that be the case?" Alec said as he started to get ready for training.

"We always train as parabatai," Jace replied.

"Oh come on Jace, we haven't done that in months. In fact we usually have to spend all of our time trying to train Clary. This should be a nice change, actually practicing rather than teaching someone the very basics," Alec said, and he noticed how Jace furrowed his brow, and Alec presumed because this was because of the way he had spoken about Clary.

"Okay then, I guess we better get started," Jace eventually said with less enthusiasm than he'd intended.

Jace scowled as he leant up against the wall of the room and watched Alec and Sebastian train. Everything had started out normally, but soon it had become apparent that Jace was not needed by the two other boys, who were far more evenly matched than either of them with Jace. There was also the issue of Jace's Heavenly Fire, which tended to flare up when training, and meant that he would frequently have to sit out so he could cool down. Alec and Sebastian hadn't noticed that Jace had now been 'calming down' for almost twenty minutes, as the two continued to spar. One battle between them could last forever, and Jace noticed how they were still moving just as fluidly together as they had when they'd been fighting demons. Even then Jace couldn't help but noticed how the two hardly even seemed to communicate, they just understood each other, just like parabatai did. It wasn't uncommon for shadow hunters to also work well with those who they weren't bound to, and Jace had always known that whilst he and Alec balanced each other due to their differing natures, they were not always the best fighting pair, especially when it came to training. Jace had always been faster and stronger than Alec, however the older shadow hunter had accepted this many years ago, but still this meant that neither boy could practice properly, not that they'd minded before, they'd just made things work. As Jace watched Alec and Sebastian continue to practice he couldn't help but think that they looked more like parabatai, and Sebastian could offer Alec a partner much more beneficial than someone who could easily beat him and possibly burn through him if he got too into the fight. Jace sighed loudly, although no one else noticed the sound, and he continued to look on as Sebastian and Alec occasionally shot each other smiles as each one looked like they might win. Eventually Alec caught Sebastian off guard and managed to trip him, however Sebastian dragged Alec down with him, so the older boy fell on top of him. Jace stood up straight as he perceived the end of their sparring, but he soon noticed that neither of the shadow hunters were taking any further action, instead they had become lost in each other, and Jace coughed loudly before the moment became too intimate. Alec and Sebastian finally looked away from each other and stood up, and then looked over at Jace.

"Are you feeling better?" Sebastian asked, and Jace nodded, although his frustration was still clear.

"What's wrong? You annoyed you can't train properly because of the Heavenly Fire?" Alec asked as he started to stretch out his body, and Sebastian's eyes followed each movement intensely.

"_That's_ not the problem," Jace mumbled, and Alec have him a quizzical look.

"Then what's stopping you from training?" Alec asked.

"Maybe the fact that you're turning this into a date," Jace said, and Sebastian's gaze became focused on him.

"We're just training, nothing 'unprofessional`'," Sebastian said casually, and his blasé attitude further annoyed Jace.

"Sure you are, that's why I can't even spar with my _parabatai_ for five seconds," Jace said to Sebastian.

"I am not stopping you," Sebastian said, his tone becoming tenser.

"Really? Because the desperate looks you keep giving him are enough on their own to put me off," Jace snapped at Sebastian.

"Jace! Do not speak to him like that," Alec said as he stepped between the two.

"And here we are again, you choosing him over me," Jace said, and even as he said them he regretted his words.

Some part of Jace was aware that he was lashing out at Sebastian because he felt somewhat replaced by him, as highlighted through the training session, and even though he knew he was upsetting Alec he couldn't seen to stop himself from snapping.

"Jace, the only reason we haven't trained together in so long is because the second you met Clary you started to completely ignore me. It's okay, I'm over it by now, but don't you even think about saying I'm neglecting you, because you choose Clary over your parabatai every time," Alec replied, instantly silencing Jace, who couldn't disprove his words.

Alec gave Jace one final hurt look, and he then left the training room, and Sebastian quickly followed him, and to Jace's surprise, Alec actually seemed very glad for the company and comfort, yet another thing his parabatai no longer offered him.

**A/N** I am so sorry for not updating for so long! I have now sorted out the plot and planning, so I will be publishing frequently once again. Reviews are still much appreciated, as always, so please do R&R.


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